Paula Radcliffe & Jo Pavey to meet in London 10,000

The GB pair are set for a close duel over part of the Olympic marathon course

Paula Radcliffe will face fellow Briton Jo Pavey on Monday in the Bupa London 10,000, which takes place on part of the 2012 Olympic marathon route.

The 37-year-old, who returns after 18 months away raising her family, was due to run in the Great Manchester Run this month but withdrew because of illness.

Pavey was inside the British Olympic qualifying mark at the London Marathon, finishing 19th in two hours 28 minutes.

European gold medallist Mo Farah will defend his title in the men's race.

Radcliffe set the world 10km record of 30:21 in San Juan, Puerto Rico, in February 2003, two months before setting the world marathon record of 2:15.26 in London.

This will be her first competitive outing since giving birth to her second child, Raphael, in September last year as she looks towards running an autumn marathon and posting the Olympic qualifying time of 2:31:00.

Pavey's 10km best is nearly a minute-and-a half slower than Radcliffe's world record, but the Exeter athlete is keen to challenge her illustrious compatriot.

"I am looking forward to racing in London over the Olympic marathon route," said Pavey, who is also 37.

"Of course, Paula will be favourite but I have recovered well from the London Marathon and hopefully I can be competitive. It's great to see Paula back up and running again - hopefully she will inspire us all to some fast times."

Although Radcliffe and Pavey are likely to be the leading contenders, a further 10 British athletes in the field have run 10km in under 33:30, including international cross country runners Julia Bleasdale and Gemma Steel, and marathon internationals Susan Partridge and Alyson Dixon.

Farah set a national and course record of 27:44 in the men's race last year when he defeated Kenya's world record holder Micah Kogo.

This year he faces a group of talented British internationals in a field containing 11 men who have broken 29:30.

Among them are Dan Robinson, the 2006 Commonwealth Games marathon bronze medallist, Andrew Lemoncello, who was eighth in the 2010 London Marathon, Phil Wicks, who was fourth in this race two years ago, and Scott Overall, who was seventh in the Great Manchester Run.